About Wind River Tobacco Company
Wind River Tobacco, headquartered in North Carolina, has quickly become a standout in the tobacco industry, thanks to its forward-thinking approach and impressive growth. Since its founding, the company has expanded rapidly by innovating its distribution model and strategically acquiring businesses. With a unique two-tier distribution system that ensures its products are available nationwide, Wind River continues to adapt and thrive, bringing a fresh perspective to a fast-paced and evolving market. Their success story is one of resilience, efficiency, and an unwavering commitment to meeting customer needs.
The Business Situation
As Wind River expanded its operations, the company faced increasing challenges in its shipping processes. Their legacy systems, including manual data entry and fragmented workflows across multiple carrier portals, resulted in inefficiencies and errors. These problems were compounded by the need to ship primarily via LTL (less-than-truckload) carriers, a requirement not fully supported by their existing ERP system at the time.
Wind River’s growth also meant managing complex supply chains, incorporating manufacturing for third-party brands, and maintaining compliance with intricate tobacco licensing regulations. The manual processes not only slowed operations but also left room for costly errors, such as incorrect bill of lading (BOL) weights that could lead to invoice corrections and overcharges.
THE SOLUTION
Wind River adopted Acumatica’s cloud-based ERP system to modernize its operations and partnered with 3G Pacejet Shipping to address its shipping needs. The collaboration provided Wind River with:
- Integrated LTL Shipping: Pacejet enabled seamless integration with multiple LTL carriers, addressing Wind River’s primary shipping requirement.
- Automation: The solution automated weight calculations, BOL generation, and rate shopping, significantly reducing manual intervention.
- Scalability: The cloud-based nature of both Acumatica and Pacejet supported Wind River’s nationwide expansion and remote operational capabilities.
- Customizability: While most features were implemented out-of-the-box, minor customizations, such as adding fields to shipping paperwork, were easily accommodated.
Despite being one of the earliest adopters of the combined Acumatica and Pacejet solution, 3G, Wind River, and their VAR, Intelligent Technologies, worked closely to overcome initial implementation hurdles. Daily calls and collaborative troubleshooting ensured alignment among all parties, paving the way for a successful rollout.
THE OUTCOME
The partnership between Wind River, Acumatica, and 3G delivered transformative results:
- Error Reduction: Manual data entry errors, including weight inaccuracies, were virtually eliminated, reducing invoice corrections and ensuring accurate shipping rates.
- Operational Efficiency: Wind River maintained its original shipping staff of two employees despite a significant increase in shipping volume, demonstrating the efficiency of the automated processes.
- Improved Accuracy and Compliance: Standardized BOLs improved contractual clarity and compliance, fostering smoother operations with carriers.
- Nationwide Growth Enablement: With access to a diverse carrier network and competitive rates through Pacejet, Wind River expanded its reach across the U.S., fulfilling its vision of nationwide distribution.
CONCLUSION
The success of this implementation highlights the strength of the collaboration between Wind River, 3G, and Acumatica. Working together, the teams navigated early adopter challenges to deliver a scalable and efficient shipping solution tailored to Wind River’s unique needs. The ongoing partnership continues to support Wind River’s strategic goals, including potential expansion into international markets and further integration of distribution workflows.
Wind River Tobacco’s journey with 3G and Acumatica exemplifies the impact of innovative software solutions on business growth. By automating critical processes and fostering seamless integrations, the partnership empowered Wind River to achieve operational excellence and sustain its growth trajectory in a competitive market. This story underscores the value of collaboration and tailored solutions in addressing complex business challenges.
